A team of senior Auckland councillors and lawyers today begin a lengthy process to work out how much embattled mayor Len Brown will have to repay, after he was formally censured yesterday.

The mayor ''unreservedly'' accepted a censure by councillors over his actions during a two year affair with council advisory board member Bevan Chuang.

As a result he has given his word that he will put money towards the more than $100,000 cost of an Ernst and Young review into his behaviour during the affair, and will repay personal costs such as the use of his mobile phone for personal calls and texts.

The report showed Brown did not misuse council resources during his affair but he made 1375 texts and calls to his mistress and failed to declare more than $39,000 in free hotel rooms and upgrades, as well as an NRL Grand Final ticket and an iPad.

It is not known how much he will have to repay. The final cost of the Ernst and Young review is also unknown.

Getting the mayor to pay was the sticking point for councillors, many of whom felt the mayor had shown a lack of contrition over the affair.

A vote of no confidence, sought by a quarter of the councillors, was not allowed due to council standing orders. The vote, no matter the result, would not have had any binding effect on Brown.

He would not have to resign.

The debate at the meeting was often heated and punctuated by persistent heckles from the public gallery.